Now Women Are Calling In Sick To Work For ‘Fat Days’ And ‘Bad Hair Days’

According to The Daily Mail, some women have such self-esteem and body issues that they can’t even bring themselves to go to work. More than nine out ten women (92%) said they continually doubt their looks, and some admitted to calling in sick to work on ‘fat days’, because they couldn’t bear to see colleagues. The participants in the study admitted that “bad hair days” or “fat days” impacted on their performance at work, and 6% even admitted to even phoning in sick as a result.

Donna Watson, a spokesperson from Chimes Shopping Centre, which commissioned the study involving 1,000 shoppers, said: ‘It appears the vast majority of women today are not comfortable with their bodies. ‘The research shows this can impact on their work life, socializing and their relationships.”

This is quite sad news to hear but are we surprised? These women may feel bad about their bodies more because they are bombarded constantly with images of underweight models and airbrushed complexions but to let it hurt their careers is really bad. Work is supposed to be an environment where you can just focus on doing your job well and not how you look. You need to look professional but you should not need to worry about being judged for your looks.

Of course, we know that is not true as just recently Hillary Clinton, the foreign affairs leader for the most powerful country in the world, was lambasted by the press for not wearing makeup in public. A woman’s looks are always part of the focus, no matter how far up they are on the career ladder. “Whether you’re coming up the career path or at the height of your career like Clinton, we still see women, certainly more than men, judged on appearance not accomplishments,” said Nancy Mellard, general counsel for business services company CBIZ. There are no studies showing that how a man wears his suit will impact whether people think he is smart or not (unless he wears them on his head but in the right context that could be hilarious.) For women there is study after study telling us that if you do not wear the exact perfect amount of makeup, your career may be in danger.

It is no wonder women look in the mirror at least eight times a day, according to a new study.Another recent survey found that women would rather go on a job interview (torture!) than show up to work without makeup. And this isn’t just college graduates at their new job, this is women at the top of their games too. Earlier this year, a female CEO in the investment banking industry admitted she had 10 plastic surgery procedures

Luckily, according to this study it does get a little better as we get older. According to The Daily Mail study, those over 50 were shown to be the least self-conscious. This may be why Hillary was able to say, “If I want to wear my glasses I’m wearing my glasses. If I want to pull my hair back, I’m pulling my hair back. At some point it’s just not something that deserves a whole lot of time and attention,” she told CNN. “If others want to worry about it, I’ll let them do the worrying for a change.” Remember that you are feeling too fat to go to work.